Japan has made a rare offshore gas discovery with an exploration well in the Hokkaido region off the north-east coast.
The operator, Japan Petroleum Exploration (Japex), said the well is 50 kilometres off the coast of Hidaka in a water depth of 1070 metres.
It was spudded on 13 April 2019 and was drilled to a depth of 2530 metres using the semi-submersible Ensco 8504.
